For the third consecutive summer, a select group of players has come together to represent the Great Plains region at the North American Hockey Showcase. 

And for his third consecutive summer, Chaska High School boys' varsity coach Dave Snuggerud will be the primary architect of the squad's mentality. 

"You're honest with them up front, from the very get-go," Snuggerud said during the 2017 team's first day together on Saturday at the Chaska Community Center. 

"(We get) these kids to understand that there are other great players with the same ability around the country," Snuggerud added.

In between games of kickball, dryland training and a study of NHL highlights for playing tips, the Great Plains members squeezed in a couple of hours on the ice, where Snuggerud is able to coax maximum effort out of a collection of players relatively new to each other.

In addition to developing the team's pre-tourney strategy and line combinations, Snuggerud said that an integral part of his role as coach is to develop the players' integrity.

"What separates you is the kind of character you have," Snuggerud said.

"So that's what you try to teach them in that short period of time."